Colin Johnson still remembers his final time suiting up in a Ball State football uniform. He can picture the snow falling in Huntington, West Virginia, when he put on his pads for the last time. 

The Cardinals were facing Marshall, a former Mid-American Conference (MAC) powerhouse in the late 1990s and early 2000s. The Thundering Herd had future Jacksonville Jaguars and Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Byron Leftwich under center while former Ball State running back Marcus Merriweather set records for the Cardinals behind an offensive line with Johnson as a mainstay. 

Although Ball State fell to Marshall 38-14, Johnson looks back on his final collegiate game fondly 22 years later due to a brief interaction he had with a game official who commented on Johnson’s classy way of playing the game. 

“Someone's always watching, whether you're the starter or you’re a backup or you're just part of the team, someone's watching and you're making an impact on somebody's life by the way you approach things and the way you attack it,” Johnson said. 

The Cardinals’ current interim head coach believes this mentality applies to Ball State’s conclusion to the 2024 season Friday, Nov. 29 when they battle the Bobcats (8-3, 6-1 MAC) in Athens, Ohio. While Ball State may not have much to gain as a collective unit Friday, Johnson doesn’t think the Black Friday contest is completely meaningless to the Cardinals as individuals.

“We have a lot to lose,” Johnson said. “The heartache in the locker room after you lose, it sticks with you. Especially when you're a senior, you never want to remember your last football game as a loss.” 

Redshirt junior offensive lineman Kevin Meeder knows this will not only be his final time suiting up as a Ball State Cardinal, but it will be the last sanctioned football game he ever plays. Unlike many of his teammates, Meeder has no aspirations of playing professional football. Instead, he would rather foray his upcoming construction management degree into a career in that field, branding himself as a “hammer and nails guy.” That doesn’t mean Meeder doesn’t have something to play for against Ohio.

“I want to close out on a high note,” Meeder said. “I want to go for myself – for pride in this university.” 

Meeder has started every game this season apart from last weekend’s loss to Bowling Green on Ball State’s senior day. His family made the near six-hour trip from his hometown of Portersville, Pennsylvania, and the first time they saw their son on game day was during the team’s traditional Cardinal Walk to Scheumann Stadium two hours prior to kickoff.

Meeder remembered telling his family that he didn’t know if he would be healthy enough to play that day, as the severity of an MRI scan on his neck from two days prior was yet to be decided. He did not play, and redshirt sophomore Luke Dalton took his starting role before sustaining an injury of his own during the game. Redshirt freshman Cody Smith finished the game in place of Dalton.

While Meeder is questionable for the Cardinals’ season finale in Athens, he said missing senior day action has motivated him even more to suit up one last time on his own terms.

“This is my way of saying goodbye,” Meeder said. “One last ride, one last hoorah.” 

Even if Meeder does play, the Cardinals will be without two other starting offensive lineman Friday as well. Graduate student Damon Kaylor was ruled out for the season after starting the first four games of the year, and redshirt sophomore Taran Tyo recently entered the transfer portal after starting 23 straight games for Ball State dating back to the beginning of the 2023 campaign. 

Tyo is not the only Cardinal to enter the portal prior to the season’s end, as redshirt sophomore linebacker Danny Royster and redshirt junior wide receiver Kiael Kelly did the same after Ball State’s loss to Bowling Green. Royster only appeared in four games this season after nine games of action last year, but Kelly has been a staple for the Cardinals since the 2023 season’s inception. 

Kelly made sporadic appearances in the first six games of the 2023 campaign before earning the starting quarterback role for the last six contests of the season. During the offseason leading up to the 2024 season, Kelly entered the transfer portal briefly before returning to Ball State as a defensive back. 

Kelly did not play a snap at defensive back this season, seeing the field as a running back or wide receiver in limited packages. He only accumulated 80 net yards on 43 touches in 2024. 

Johnson’s stance on the transfer portal was mostly player-friendly, understanding why some Ball State players would want to flee the coup after a season of limited opportunities or raising their stock to earn playing time at a more notable program.

“The only thing we can do is make sure these guys – especially the guys that are returning here next year – are bought into the process and the groundwork that we have laid, because there can be success here,” Johnson said. 

It will not be an easy task for the remaining Cardinals to find success in Athens, as the Ohio Bobcats currently sit atop the MAC despite a three-way-tie for conference records with Bowling Green and Miami (OH). 

Ohio has the second-most yards and fourth-most touchdowns in the conference, relying on a run-heavy attack that has resulted in the most rushing scores and the second-most rushing yards in the MAC through the first 11 games.

More specifically, Ohio ranks second in red zone opportunities and first in red zone touchdowns. Ball State is 10th in MAC red zone defense in terms of opportunities allowed with the second most touchdowns surrendered in the red zone. Last season, the Cardinals allowed the third-least red zone touchdowns on the third-least opportunities. 

First-season defensive coordinator Jeff Knowles echoed what defensive leaders like senior linebacker Keionte Newson have said all season: missed tackles are costing the Ball State defense. Knowles admitted there are many underclassmen earning more playing time than he was hoping at the start of the season, as injuries to key defenders has forced his hand. 

He does believe the Cardinals’ defense has taken steps in the right direction as the season has progressed, holding a Bowling Green offense that averages 153 rushing yards per game to 103 as an example. 

“That part of it is what makes you keep coming back after the heartbreaking and the gut-wrenching losses where you just can't get them out of your head,” Knowles said.

However, that growth is too little, too late with just one game left in the season. 

As for the Ball State offense, it will not be easy for the Cardinals to move the ball against a Bobcats defense that allows the second-least yards per game with the third-least touchdowns. Offensive coordinator Jared Elliott felt the same as Johnson when it came to finding motivation within his unit in a game that does not look like it holds much significance for Ball State on the surface level.

“This can't just be a check the box game,” Elliott said. “When you've given so much to the game of football, it's just who we are as competitors.” 

Aside from losing Kelly to the transfer portal, the Cardinals’ offense is also without junior Justin Bowick, the squad’s leading wide receiver through the first 10 games of the season. News broke just before Ball State’s game against Bowling Green that Bowick would use his redshirt option to preserve two more years of eligibility after playing in just four games this season. 

Elliott compared the constantly-changing wide receiver room to a game of musical chairs, characterizing the group that has endured numerous injuries, position changes, redshirts and more as resilient. While Ball State’s red zone defense has not looked sharp this season, the offense hasn’t been a whole lot better.

The Cardinals’ offense has made 32 trips to the red zone this season compared to its opponents’ 41. On 29 occasions, Ball State has scored with 20 of those scores being touchdowns, while its opponents have converted on 39 of 41 red zone trips with 30 touchdowns. 

This puts the Cardinals in ninth for MAC red zone opportunities, eighth in touchdowns. Last season, Ball State had the fourth-least red zone opportunities and the third-least red zone touchdowns, marking a slight 2024 improvement through one less game. 

No matter where the Cardinals stand through 11 games, there is still 60 minutes of regulation left in the season. Those who have stuck with the program throughout its most turbulent season of the decade may have a herculean feat awaiting them in Athens, as the Bobcats open as 14.5-point favorites, but pride continues to drive Ball State’s players and staff.

“I'm proud of the guys who are still here right now that really fought through it,” Knowles said. “It is adversity that you're taking on all year – losing those close games. It's tough to show up and demand as much of yourself each week.” 

Kickoff for Ball State vs. Ohio Friday, Nov. 29 is set for Noon. The contest is scheduled to be broadcast on CBS Sports Network.

Contact Kyle Smedley via email at kmsmedley213@gmail.com or via X @KyleSmedley_.

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